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Ancient Olympic Games
The Greeks invented athleti contests and held
them in honour of their gods. The Isthmos game were stagedevery two years
at the Isthmos of Corinth. The Pythian games took place every four years
near Delphi. But the most famous games were those at Olympia, a town in
south- western Greece. These took place every four years. The ancient
Olympics seem to have begun in the early 700 BC, in honour of Zeus the
father of the Greek gods and goddesses. No women were allowed to watch the
games. Pottery dating from around 550 BC shows men taking part in the
games naked or wearing only a thong. Women were not allowed to go to the Olympic games, but they did have their own festival at Olympia once every four years. It was called the Heraia and was held in honour of Hera, wife of Zeus. The events there were all running races, and unmarried girls took part. Winners were awarded crowns of sacred olive branches, the same as men.
Young men in most Greek cities spent a lot of their time training for these competitions, and the best of them were chosen to compete against the best young men from other cities. Then they would all meet, at the Olympic Games or the Isthmian Games or elsewhere, and compete for prizes and for the favour of the gods. Of course these games also served as good training for the army, because all these men would be soldiers as well. The events were the same kind as in the Olympics today: running, jumping, throwing a javelin, and throwing a discus. Only men could compete. Greek boys also played games which were not part of the Olympic games, like field hockey.
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